San Jose: Cinco de Mayo festivities yield more arrests than last year, police say

SAN JOSE -- The peak of Cinco de Mayo celebrations Sunday throughout San Jose yielded more arrests and fewer citations than last year, which saw an inverse trend, as more than a quarter of the city's active police force flooded the streets solely to monitor the festivities.

According to the San Jose Police Department, 21 people were arrested and 32 citations were issued downtown and in the East Side, the areas where police concentrated their efforts. In 2013, 12 people were arrested and 61 citations were issued.

The police contingent deployed Sunday included four lieutenants, 38 sergeants and 193 officers, or 26 percent of SJPD full-duty officers.

Morales said the arrests covered assaults, drug and weapons offenses, people with active arrest warrants or parole and probation violations, and public intoxication. One person was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon after throwing a bottle.

A portion of the added police presence was directed toward traffic diversions at Fourth and Santa Clara streets downtown and King and Story roads, as well as the outflow from a Cinco de Mayo celebration held at the Santa Clara County fairgrounds. Another focus of the extra patrols were gatherings in parking lots and parks, among them Roosevelt Park east of downtown.

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There were outbursts throughout the evening: Reports surfaced of revelers shaking city buses, and "sideshows" -- impromptu car stunt exhibitions -- intermittently disrupted traffic. But overall, Morales said, there were no major reports of injuries or damage.

Police have been on holiday-fueled saturation patrols since Friday and will continue Monday, though none were or were expected to be as heavy as what was seen Sunday.